Electrically-controlled railway-switch.



E. S? OLMSTED. ELECTRIGALLY CONTROLLED RAILWAY SWITOL APPLICATION FILED MAR. 22, 1918.

1,0795991 Patentd Dec. 2, 1913.

: trolled railway switches, the same being deupon my PatentNo. 978,053. In my said other too closely, there will be no danger of 2 cut is shown and described a mechanism with two lixed and parallel bars or one movthere Wlll be one for each track, that is, one

2 just back of the trolley switch. As both ELMER S. OLMSTED, OF BEEGHMONT, KENTUCKY, ASSIGNOR TO CHEA'IHAM ELECTRIC SWITQHING DEVICE COMPANY, OF LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY.

ELECTRICALLY-CONTROLLED RAILWAY-SWITCH.

1,079,991, Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 2, 1913. Application filed March 22,4913. Serial No. 756 142. I

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, ELMER S. OLMsTED,

a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Beechmont, in the county of J effer- 5 son, State of Kentucky, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Electrically- Gontrolled Railway-Switches, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to electrically conthese secondary trolley pans are identical, a description of one will answer for both.

in the Cheat-ham system referred to in the patents above mentioned, and particularly in Patent No. 787,827, there is employed a trolley pan, or line contac'tor, 1, a relay or circuit-controller 2 and a double solenoid 3 which is connected to the switch 'point rail 4 in any suitable manner, so that when the device is in use when power is applied to the motors of the car, the car will be switched in one direct-ion, and if power be turned ofl from the motors of the car, the car will be switched in another direction. In the particular embodiment of the present invention as here shown there is a time fuse 6 and a signed as an improvement upon the devices described and claimed in United States Patents Nos. 612,702, 696,313, 787,827, all granted to Robert V. Cheatham and also patent is shown and described and claimed a mechanism for locking the switch so that whereseveral cars are operated together by one motorman, or where one car follows anhaving some of the cars of the train switched iii one direction and some in another; or of having the track switch moved between rail which is parallel to the rail 8 and destrucks of a preceding car. In my said patignated 11 is connected to the time fuse 6 by which operates both electrically and mechanically so as to fix a portion of the controller or relay from the time that the-first trolley Wheel leaves the first trolley pan (or 0 line contractor) until it strikes a second trolley pan (or line contactor) which is farther along the track.

" The object of my present invention is to provide a locking device of the same character as set forth in my said patent in a simplified and improved form.

or a more particular description of m invention, reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a. part hereof, in which is shown a diagrammatic view of one embodiment of my invention.

To simplify the drawing, only two trolley pans (or line contactors) are indicated. hey may be of any suitable form, either balancing weight 18 and on the same arm is pivotally connected to a core 19 which moves vertically in the magnet of the relay 2 in such a manner that when the magnet of this relay is energized the core 19 is raised. The weight 18 is suflicient to keep any raising from taking place unless a motor current is passing through the magnet of the relay 2. Under normal conditions when no motor current 'is passing through the relay 2 the bell crank lever 17 has its upper or free end resting against a' pivoted contact 20 which is rigidly connected to a suitable arm 21 and pivotally mounted. at 22. The arm 21 is slotted or perforated so as to permit a vertical rod 23 to slide vertically therethrough, this rod being guided at its lower end in the magnet of the circuit breaker 7 and at its upper end by means of a suitable guide 24. This rod 23 carries a bracket 25 which is adable bar, both types being old and well known. When my invention is in usethere will be either one or two second trolley pans, as may be required. Where two are used,

which will be engaged when the trolley car takes the curve and another which will be engaged when the trolley car goes straight ahead. When only one is used, it is placed also, if desired, a suitable weight 26. The lower end of this rod 23 passes into a mercury cup, as set forthin said Patent No. 787 ,827 A wire 27 connects the magnet of means of a suitable wire 12," and this time just-ably and fixedly mounted thereon, and

the circuit breaker 7 with the pivot 22 and a second wire 28 connects this'magnet with the double solenoid 3 so that one coil of said solenoid may be energized by current passing through the wire 28. A fixed stop 29 The switch 14 has two contacts 31 ahd 32 united by a suitable jaw 33 when the mechanism is in the position shown. This jaw 33 is rigidly connected to the core 34, which is non-magnetic, except for the part 35 which is made of iron or other suitable magnetic material. This core 34 passes into a double solenoid with two coils 3G and 37, both of which are on a common axis. The coil 36 has one terminal connected to both of 'the secondary trolley pans 38, only one of which is shown. The trolley pan 38 has two bars which are parallel, one 39 being connected by a Wire 40 to the coil 36 and the other, a bar 41, being connected by a suitable wire to the trolley wire 42. The coils 36 and 37 are connected to the ground by a suitable wire 43. The coil 37 is connected by a wire 44 to a small stud bar 45 of the trolley pan 1. This bar 45 is parallel with the bar-8 and near one end of the.bar 11. A trolley wheel 46 is shown connecting the bars 8 and 11. It runs, when the apparatus is in use, from left to right but passes over the bar 45 and later over the trolley pan 38.

In View of the foregoing, the operation of my apparatus will be readily understood.

Assuming the device to be erected and in use in the normal manner, a trolley wheel being in the position indicated, no motor current being emploved, then a'current will flow through the bar 8, wire 9, magnet of the relav 2, wire 10 and trolley wire 42. A second current will flow through from the bar 8 to the bar 11 by means of the trolley wheel 46 and thence through the wire 12, fuse 6, wire 13, switch 14, wire 15, relay armature or hell crank lever 17 contact 20, wire 27, circuit breaker 7. wire 28, and thence through one oi the coils of the double solenoid 3 to the ground. Under these circumstances. when the device is in use in the customary manner, it iscommon to have a car go straight ahead when the trolley wheel is under the trolley pan with power oitthe motors. This is not essential, but it is the usual practice. If the switch-point rail 4 is in the right position it remains in the right position. lt' it is not in the right position it. is thrown into the right position. The trolley wheel 46 then runs i'arlhcr along the 1'rollcy pan and leaves the rail 11 and passes on to the rail 45 which is directly connected to the rail 3.

The current then flows from the rail 8 to the rail 45 through the wheel 46, and thence through the wire 44 to the coil 37 which thereupon becomes energized and makes the iron of the core 34 pass into the magnetic zone of the coil 37 thereby opening the electric switch 14. The switch, then remains open until the trolley wheel 46 enters upon the trolley pan 3S and then this wheel connccts' the bars 41 and 39 so that a current may flow through the wire 40 into the coil 36 and thence to the ground, and thereby restore the core 34 to its normal position, and close the switch 14. If power is taken through the trolley wheel 46, when in the position shown, and passed to the motors, then the action is almost as above described, except that the motor current energizes the magnet of the relay 2 enough to cause the armature to be actuated'(by armature is meant the core 19 and bell crank lever 17 together with their incidental parts) so that the bellcrank lever 17 rests against the stop 29 and then a current flows through the other coil of the solenoid 3 so that the switch point is thrown in the opposite direction from that above described, it it is not already in that position.

The operation of the switch 14 is precisely as above described so that the description will not need repeating. It is suflicient to say that in the event last above mentioned, the other trolley pan 38 will be the one the trolley wheel 46 passes upon to actuate the switch 14. If, for any reason, the trolley wheel 46 should stand on the trolley pan. 1 so as to connect. the bars 8 and 11, a blowout of the fuse 6 is prevented.

The embodiment shown and described above is not the only embodiment of my invention which comes within its scope. vIt may be embodied in any of many forms all of which come within the scope of the annexed claims.

What I claim is,

1. In a switch operating mechanism, an electrically operated switch throwing device with circuits therein and means for opening and closing one of said circuits when the device is in use so that a trolley wheel will first open said circuit and later close the same. whereby the device is rendered inoperative during the time between the opening and closing of said circuits.

2. In a. switch operating mechanism, a

double solenoid and means controlled thereby for operating a switch point, a relay, two trolley pans, an electric switch and a double solenoid connected therewith, wires, and means connecting said elements so that when a trolley wheel -is on a part of the first trolley pan the electric switch is open. and when this trolley wheel is on the second trolley pan the electric. switch is closed.

3. In a switch operating mechanism, the

ing device to operate the latter in the combination .of an electrically operative switch throwing device, a trolley, circuit closing means operated automatically during the movement of a car for transmitting current from the trolley to the switch throwproper direction, and an electric switch'devlce operative withthe circuit closing means and operated automatically from the trolley to first open and subsequently close a part of the circuit closing means.

4. In a switch operating, mechanism, the combination of an electrically operated switch throwing device,'a trolley wire, two

line contactors, a relay controllable through one of said line contactors for transmitting the current from the trolley wire to the switch throwing device,' an electric switch opening and closing device made to open and close a portion of the circuit through the relay, and connections between said electric switch opening and closing device and both of said line contactors.

ELMER SQ OLMSTED. 

